Cuba braces for tropical storm Fred

Havana, Aug 12 Cuba is bracing for tropical storm Fred, which is threatening to bring heavy rains to the island nation.

Officials have instructed communities to take precautions, reports Xinhua news agency.

Fred is expected to hit eastern Cuba early Thursday, after battering the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

Weather conditions in Cuba's central and western provinces will worsen on Friday as the storm makes its way toward the Florida Keys, according to the country's Institute of Meteorology.

After forming in the Caribbean on Tuesday, Fred became the sixth named storm of this year's Atlantic hurricane season, which runs through November 30.

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